Development of a Low-Cost Platform for 3D Bioprinting Applications

Due to the fast pace advancements in 3D printing technologies, it is now possible to bring to life three-dimensional models designed on a computer. The growing availability of user-friendly, high-resolution printers, presents us with the opportunity to adapt this tool for multiple biological purposes. Our aim is to develop a mechanism on a customized commercial 3D printer to deliver a hydrogel material to act as a scaffold for cell proliferation. Compared with non-biological printing, 3D bioprinting involves several complexities, such as the choice of materials, cell types, growth and differentiation factors, and technical hurdles related to the sensitivities of living cells and the formation of tissues. The modified 3D printer efficiently delivers biological ink substances such as alginate, collagen, chitosan, gelatin, and fibrin to create a biocompatible scaffold that will host cell proliferation. The scaffold can then be suspended in a solution with a cell line to initiate cell differentiation and self-assembly of the selected tissue. The project will allow for a cheaper more effective strategy for class research projects, medical drug testing, disease research, and potentially tissue/organ implantation. Establishing a functional platform and experimenting with the bioprinting of cartilage and other tissues enhances our understanding of cell and tissue biology and can have a significant impact in clinical settings. Developing an affordable mechanism will allow this technology to be demonstrated in undergraduate labs for a better understanding of how engineering tools can be applied to solve biological problems

Implications of Representative Concentration Pathway 4.5 Methane Emissions to Stabilize Radiative Forcing

Increases in the abundance of methane (CH4) in the Earth’s atmosphere are responsible for significant radiative forcing of climate change (Forster et al., 2007; Wuebbles and Hayhoe, 2002). Since 1750, a 2.5 fold increase in atmospheric CH4 contributed 0.5 W/m2 to direct radiative forcing and an additional 0.2 W/m2 indirectly through changes in atmospheric chemistry. Next to water and carbon dioxide (CO2), methane is the most abundant greenhouse gas in the troposphere. Additionally, CH4 is significantly more effective as a greenhouse gas on a per molecule basis than is CO2, and increasing atmospheric CH4 has been second only to CO2 in radiative forcing (Forster et al., 2007). The chemical reactivity of CH4 is important to both tropospheric and stratospheric chemistry. Along with carbon monoxide, methane helps control the amount of the hydroxyl radical (OH) in the troposphere where oxidation of CH4 by OH leads to the formation of formaldehyde, carbon monoxide, and ozone

Acute kidney injury and cardiac arrhythmia as the presenting features of widespread diffuse large B-cell lymphoma

Diffuse Large B-cell Lymphoma, the most common adult non-Hodgkin lymphoma, is a proliferative neoplasm of enlarged B cells. Patients may be asymptomatic on presentation, but if present, symptoms often correlate with direct organ dysfunction resulting from the site of involvement. While the gastrointestinal system is the most common site of extranodal involvement, virtually any part of the body can be infiltrated by malignant lymphocytes. Here, we present an unusual case of cardiac and bilateral renal involvement by Diffuse Large B-cell Lymphoma in a 78-year-old male with a relatively unremarkable medical history. This combination of organ involvement and the resulting clinical symptoms are uncommonly described in the literature. The patient was treated for his symptoms prior to death, but the underlying cause that explained his presentation was not identified until performance of an autopsy. As such, this case demonstrates the utility of the medical autopsy, a gold standard in diagnostic medicine that can provide a variety of benefits in today’s healthcare system

Pembuatan Sistem Pelayanan Taksi dengan Menggunakan Android, Google Maps, dan Ruby On Rails

With the increase of the number of population and economy especially in big cities, the need for any modes of public transportation is also increases. One of the mode of transportation with increasing demand by the medium-to-high income population is taxi. The fact that the current operation of taxies is still using conventional and inefficient ways of communication such as two-way radios, and phone calls, raises the possibility of using more efficient tools such as using Android devices, Google Map API, and Ruby of Rails framework as proposed in this paper. It can be shown that the application of these technologies can provide an integrated taxi service system which is more informative, effective and efficient

Percepción de la prisión preventiva y el respeto de los derechos fundamentales en el Distrito Judicial de Tumbes, Año 2020

La prisión preventiva es un medida cautelar personal de ultima ratio, es decir su empleo es de forma excepcional; asimismo, es menester indicar que, en la mayoría de los ordenamientos jurídicos de Latinoamérica y Europa, el uso de la prisión preventiva, se justifica en la necesidad de asegurar la presencia del imputado en el proceso, que no podría obtenerse con otras medidas menos gravosas, de lo contrario se convertiría en una medida arbitraria; actualmente en el Perú se está empleando como una regla en la mayoría de procesos penales, y no de forma excepcional (naturaleza de ultima ratio). Como objetivo general se analizó la percepción de la comunidad jurídica sobre el uso de la prisión preventiva y la percepción sobre el respeto de los derechos fundamentales en los delitos cometidos por funcionarios públicos en el Distrito Judicial de Tumbes, año 2020. El enfoque de investigación es cuantitativo, método hipotético deductivo, diseño no experimental, tipo descriptiva explicativa, la técnica la encuesta y el instrumento el cuestionario, la población estuvo constituida por 750 abogados del ICAT, siendo la muestra 255 abogados; se logró determinar que, existe relación significativa entre las variables materia de estudio

Percepción de la prisión preventiva y el respeto de los derechos fundamentales en el Distrito Judicial de Tumbes, Año 2020

La prisión preventiva es un medida cautelar personal de ultima ratio, es decir su empleo es de forma excepcional; asimismo, es menester indicar que, en la mayoría de los ordenamientos jurídicos de Latinoamérica y Europa, el uso de la prisión preventiva, se justifica en la necesidad de asegurar la presencia del imputado en el proceso, que no podría obtenerse con otras medidas menos gravosas, de lo contrario se convertiría en una medida arbitraria; actualmente en el Perú se está empleando como una regla en la mayoría de procesos penales, y no de forma excepcional (naturaleza de ultima ratio). Como objetivo general se analizó la percepción de la comunidad jurídica sobre el uso de la prisión preventiva y la percepción sobre el respeto de los derechos fundamentales en los delitos cometidos por funcionarios públicos en el Distrito Judicial de Tumbes, año 2020. El enfoque de investigación es cuantitativo, método hipotético deductivo, diseño no experimental, tipo descriptiva explicativa, la técnica la encuesta y el instrumento el cuestionario, la población estuvo constituida por 750 abogados del ICAT, siendo la muestra 255 abogados; se logró determinar que, existe relación significativa entre las variables materia de estudio

Reabastecimento de Material de Catering no Transporte Aéreo – Estudo da sua Viabilidade nos Percursos Rio de Janeiro-Lisboa e São Paulo-Lisboa

Fruto das constantes e rápidas alterações impostas pelos mercados, torna-se necessário um controlo mais eficiente e com menos intervenientes nas cadeias de abastecimentos, sendo que hoje, a redução dos custos associados às operações não críticas, torna-se um imperativo para a grande parte das empresas. Deste modo, esta dissertação aborda a situação do modelo atual de compras de diversos produtos de catering suportado pela TAP Portugal nas cadeias de abastecimento Rio de Janeiro-Lisboa e São Paulo-Lisboa e analisa uma alternativa de modelo de compras que eventualmente possa implicar menores custos globais e a manutenção dos níveis de eficiência já registados. Na prossecução destes objetivos principais, além desta dissertação ser um contributo à literatura já existente, e numa perspetiva empírica, numa primeira fase procedeu-se à seleção dos materiais em armazém, selecionando aqueles que contribuíram para o estudo. Procedeu-se à análise estatística desses materiais durante o ano de 2011, desde a sua caracterização técnica, consumos, encomendas processadas, custos de distribuição e armazenagem, e por fim, os custos globais implícitos. Numa segunda fase, tendo como objetivo identificar uma possível alternativa de modelo de custos, é desenvolvido um estudo do mercado brasileiro, que visa identificar quais os custos que a empresa pode eventualmente suportar por adquirir diretamente os produtos aos fornecedores locais. A dissertação termina no capítulo 6, com a apresentação das principais conclusões. Independentemente das conclusões obtidas, o modelo alternativo de compras figura-se apenas como um projeto-piloto, ou seja, mesmo que os resultados sejam favoráveis, a sua implementação não é totalmente certa

Observational tests of hurricane intensity estimations using GPS radio occultations

This study presents a novel approach to estimating the intensity of hurricanes using temperature profiles from Global Positioning System radio occultation (GPSRO) measurements. Previous research has shown that the temperature difference between the ocean surface and the eyewall outflow region defines hurricanes' thermodynamic efficiency, which is directly proportional to the storm's intensity. Outflow temperatures in the eyewall region of 27 hurricanes in 2004–2011 were obtained from GPSRO observations. These observations, along with ocean surface temperatures from NASA Modern Era-Retrospective Analysis for Research and Applications, made it possible to estimate hurricane intensities using a simplified hurricane model. Our preliminary results are quantitatively consistent with best-track values from the National Hurricane Center within 9.4%. As a by-product of our study, we present for the first time GPSRO vertical temperature profiles in the vicinity of the eyewall region of hurricanes, which we compared with collocated temperature profiles from the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts Reanalysis Interim (ERA-Interim). Some of the GPSRO data sets reveal a double tropopause in the vicinity of the eyewall—a characteristic that we do not see in ERA-Interim. We conclude that GPSRO observations can be of supplementary assistance in augmenting existing data sets used in hurricane intensity estimation. GPSROs' cloud-penetrating capability and high vertical resolution can be useful in providing soundings in the area close to the eyewall region of hurricanes revealing detailed information about their thermal structure, potentially advancing our current knowledge of their dynamics, evolution, and physics